Just received some of the soft in 18L. Strung it up at 47/45, full bed in my IG prestige pro. This string definately plays softer then the original Focus Hex.

I found it to have better ball pocketing, more pop, and great spin. A very comfortable string to play with. I never felt any harshness right from the start, as I did with the original. Overall a solid improvement in all areas of performance. The teal color is really cool as well. Gonna try the Yellow 17L in my other PP strung slightly tighter, and compare.

Softer in what sense? More elastic and springier, or simply a softer material with more feel?

I like the original Hex but it just seems to die so quickly, particularly the thinner gauges.

I would say more the latter. I didn't think it felt springy as such, but did notice that the ball did seem to pocket a bit more then the original. The feel, I thought, was much improved. Control, even at the tensions I had it, was very good.

Had a chance to hit with the yellow 17ga today. It plays firmer, as expected, then the 18ga teal, but still plays softer then the original. I actually like the yellow 17 better then the teal. I found it offered all the same nice playing characteristics of the 18ga, but seemed to add a little more bite on the ball. The control was also better. I felt I could really hit out with confidence. The 18ga teal may offer a little more pop, but the yellow has even better control.

If the playability stays good for a few weeks, I would say this is my new string.

I too have been hitting with the MSV Hex soft. I had been a long time user of MSV Focus Hex until recently switching to Pro Supex Big Ace Micro. My main complaint with the original MSV focus Hex was that it would occasionally feel a bit like plastic. A characteristic I have noticed with other poly's as well. Other than that I have always loved the pocketing, feel, and spin generation of the MSV Focus Hex. I believe MSV has improved upon the original Focus Hex. The Hex soft is a tad bit softer as the name implies but the biggest improvement is the plastic feeling has disappeared. All other attributes of the original Focus Hex remain, good pocketing, good tension maintenance, good spin generation, etc. As a matter of fact the new soft version plays very much like my new favorite string Big Ace Micro. A few times I had to look down to see which racquet I was using while doing my playtest.

Luckily for me, I recently bought a reel of Big Ace Micro so I don't have a tough decision as to which one to choose, however, had i not purchased that reel I really don't know which I would choose.

Those asking about Scorpion as a cross: CoFocus is likely the best polyester cross that exists. I am only slightly reluctant to say that since I haven't tried all poly crosses, but it really is superb. Scorpion adds too much pop, Silverstring takes too much away and SPPP reduces feel. Iontec is a fabulous cross string, but it really shines mostly as a main or in full.

I broke down and bought a reel a couple of months ago. Same performance and durability of the regular Focus Hex. It definitely has a softer, more muted feel. If you like that feel (which I do) it is an improvement.